On Thursday, KeyBank Foundation and the national Komen organization announced a $1 million grant -- the largest national-level grant the foundation has ever bestowed -- to develop the Susan G. Komen Lay Health Advisors Training Program.

"This is a dream come true for the kind of work we do," said Komen founder and CEO Nancy Brinker, upon accepting the grant from KeyCorp CEO Beth E. Mooney and Margot James Copeland, chairwoman and CEO of the KeyBank Foundation.

Prior to the official announcement, Brinker addressed more than 125 employees and guests as the first lecturer of KeyBank's 2011 Diversity Thought Leadership Series.

KeyBank Foundation is a nonprofit, charitable foundation funded by KeyCorp that supports civic programs, corporate contributions and volunteerism. Locally, KeyBank employees and friends raised more than $100,000 for the 2010 Race for the Cure, the biggest fundraiser held each September for the local Komen affiliate.

One reason Cleveland was singled out was the proven track record of two breast education programs the local affiliate has helped to fund for more than three years.

The Amigas program is part of MetroHealth Medical Center's B.R.E.A.S.T. program, which provides free mammograms, health screenings and other services. Amigas has served Hispanic women since 2007. More than 100 bilingual Amigas have been certified as breast health advocates, trained to educate other women.

The Angel Networks at Mercy Medical Center in Canton and South Pointe Hospital in Warrensville Heights do the same for black women. More than 150 volunteers (including 32 men who focus on the needs of men with, or at risk for breast cancer) are at South Pointe. Both grassroots programs will serve as examples of "best practices" for the rest of the country.

Copeland, who first met Brinker during the 2009 Race for the Cure in Cairo, Egypt, said the foundation unanimously approved the grant two weeks ago.

The similar missions of Komen and KeyBank Foundation made for a natural partnership, Copeland said.

"Komen had a significant need to reach into minority communities and underserved communities," she said. "We had the interest ... around economic self-sufficiency and diversity. We want partners like that who are going to deliver on that front. That's what's so critical."

Over the next year, Komen's national training program will be developed in Cleveland, Akron and Canton. In 2012 and 2013 it will expand to 14 other cities in Ohio, Colorado, Indiana, New York, Oregon and Washington. Nearly 500 people will be trained as health advisors to provide breast cancer education, referrals to health care services, assistance with scheduling mammograms and other services.

The grant also will help fund nine regional cancer summits over the next four years.

The number of people who will be trained locally has yet to be determined.

"What is so advantageous about Northeast Ohio is that programs [already] exist within the affiliate," said Komen national spokeswoman Andrea Rader. "We want to take what we're learning and develop training and curriculum for advisors and establish that in other communities."

Such outreach is crucial at a time when many women have lost their health insurance, and when more than one-third of women over age 40 skip annual screening mammograms.

In fiscal 2010 alone, Komen had total revenues of $312 million. Yet, said Rader, "The need is so great, especially in this economy.

"One million dollars is a lot of money," she said. "It can fund an awful lot of good work. It's really important when a corporate citizen and foundation steps up and says 'I want to invest.' "

In recent years, donations have not kept pace with the request for services made to Komen Northeast Ohio, said Sophie Sureau, executive director of the local affiliate, which encompasses 22 counties in Northeast Ohio.

The local Komen affiliate is not able to provide financial assistance to all of the groups -- including some who have received funding in past years -- that want to provide free screening and diagnostic mammograms and other services, she said.

"Of course, the additional money will help us build more relationships within the community," Sureau said. "Hopefully the leadership of KeyBank will inspire others."

People interested in a position as a lay health advisor with the Komen program should have a background working as a community health advocate. Call the national Komen for the Cure office at 972-855-1616for information.

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